Project Expediter Vs Project Coordinator

Project Expediter Vs Project Coordinator

ByFahad Usmani, PMP

You may not work in a projectized or strong matrix organization where you have full authority and access to resources. Your organization could be a balanced matrix functional organization.

In a balanced matrix, you have to request the resources for your project.

In a functional organization or weak matrix organization, your authority is reduced further, and your role can be a project coordinator or a project expediter.

You can have project coordinators or project expediters in a projectized or strong matrix organization for larger projects. They will report to the project manager or management but they will have limited authority.

Project Management Vs Program Management Vs Portfolio Management
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Project Management Vs Program Management Vs Portfolio Management

ByFahad Usmani, PMP

As the saying goes, there is always room for improvement, and organizations are constantly looking for ways to improve processes and optimize resource utilization. If an organization is big and juggling many projects at the same time, it is difficult for them to better utilize their resources if all projects are performed in isolation.

So, they manage projects in groups to use the resources efficiently.

Now, if an organization has more than one project, they will deal with them under a program or portfolio.

The distribution of projects under a program or portfolio depends on the nature and the type of project. Programs are managed through program management and portfolios are managed through portfolio management.

To manage a project under any of the above, it is necessary to understand the concepts well.

What are Projects and Operations?
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What are Projects and Operations?

ByFahad Usmani, PMP

I often see that aspirants do not understand the difference between a project and an operation. I regularly receive emails from those who are interested in applying for the PMP exam but are working with operations.

Some aspirants applied for the PMP exam, were selected for audit, and failed it. Afterward they contacted me and I reviewed their application. I found that they have been working in operations, but they thought they were in project management and that was why they failed the audit process.

Therefore, it is important for you to understand the difference between these two terms so you know if you are eligible to apply for the PMP exam.

Work Performance Information (WPI) vs Work Performance Measurements (WPM)
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Work Performance Information (WPI) vs Work Performance Measurements (WPM)

ByFahad Usmani, PMP

This blog post was based on the 4th edition of the PMBOK Guide, and from the 5th edition of the PMBOK Guide, the PMI has changed the definitions of terms used in this blog post; therefore, this post is now obsolete.

I have re-written this blog post based on the current version of the PMBOK Guide (6th edition). Please visit: Work Performance Data and Work Performance Information. I am leaving this post in case someone wants to review the old post under the PMBOK Guide (4th edition).

Management is always interested in the status and progress of the project. They want to know:

Configuration Management Vs Change Management
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Configuration Management Vs Change Management

ByFahad Usmani, PMP

Project environments are dynamic and changes are constant in areas like process, planning, or scope. You can group these changes into two categories: Change Management and Configuration Management.

“Change Management” is the first category. Here you manage changes related to project management plans, processes, and baselines.

In the second category, you manage changes related to product scope, which is known as configuration management.

Change requests are required when baselines are established and you have to make changes to them. If the baselines are not set, no formal change request is required. Change requests and configuration requests are part of the integration management system.

Close Procurement Vs Close Project

Close Procurement Vs Close Project

ByFahad Usmani, PMP

This blog post is now obsolete as the close procurement process is absent from the 6th edition of the PMBOK Guide.

At first, you may think that the close procurement process and close project process are synonyms of each other. I have seen people asking for clarification on them in several PMP forums, because they have many things in common. It can be difficult for students of project management to distinguish the two.

This blog post is meant to clear up these concepts. After reading this, you won’t have any problem differentiating between these processes.

Before we start discussing in detail, let’s make sure we all understand the key terms: procurement, phase, and project.

Enterprise Environmental Factors (EEF) & Organizational Process Assets (OPA)

Enterprise Environmental Factors (EEF) & Organizational Process Assets (OPA)

ByFahad Usmani, PMP

Though the nature of a project is temporary, they are not performed in isolation. They work in a controlled environment and affected by Enterprise Environmental Factors (EEF) and Organizational Process Assets (OPA).

The Project Management Institute terms them as influences. Enterprise environmental factors can be internal or external, while organizational process assets are always internal to an organization.

Enterprise environmental factors and organizational process assets are widely discussed in the PMBOK Guide and are inputs of almost all processes. You must have a thorough understanding of these terms.

Although the concepts are straightforward, many PMP aspirants fail to understand them and often make mistakes on the exam.

What is a Functional Organizational Structure?
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What is a Functional Organizational Structure?

ByFahad Usmani, PMP

Your working style depends on your organizational structure. The organizational structure defines your role and responsibilities and work culture. This culture includes work environment, reporting system, hierarchy, etc.

An organization can adapt to any structure as per their requirements. If they are dealing with the projects, they will choose a projectized organization. However, an organization dealing with operations will stick with a functional structure.

Every organizational structure has a different system.

In a projectized organizational structure, you report to the project manager. In a functional organizational structure, you report to a functional manager. In a matrix organizational structure, it depends.

What is a Projectized Organization Structure?
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What is a Projectized Organization Structure?

ByFahad Usmani, PMP

Organizations are having to adapt to stay profitable in this tough market, they must be results-oriented while improving their operations and working conditions.

Organizations must adapt to a suitable structure to achieve their business goals, whether that be a functional, projectized, matrix, or other type of structure.

I have discussed the matrix and functional structures in separate blog posts. Now we will discuss projectized organizations.

Please note that project and projectized are different terms. Projectized is classification for an organization that deals with projects; many experts call projectized organizations, project-oriented, or project-based organizations.